Hootie & the Blowfish is an American rock band formed in Columbia, South Carolina in 1986. The band's lineup for most of its existence has been the quartet of Darius Rucker, Mark Bryan, Dean Felber, and Jim Sonefeld. The band went on hiatus in 2008 until they announced plans for a full reunion tour in 2019 and released their first new studio album in fourteen years, Imperfect Circle.
Cracked Rear View is the debut studio album by Hootie & the Blowfish, released on July 5, 1994, by Atlantic Records. Released to positive critical reviews, it eventually sold 10.2 million copies in the United States, becoming one of the best-selling albums of all time.
"Losing My Religion" is a song by American alternative rock band R.E.M., released in February 1991 as the first single and the second track from the group's seventh album, Out of Time (1991). Built on a mandolin riff, the song was an unlikely hit for the group, garnering extensive airplay on radio as well as on MTV and VH1 due to its critically acclaimed music video. The single became R.E.M.'s highest-charting hit in the United States, reaching No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and expanding the group's popularity beyond its original fan-base. At the 1992 Grammy Awards, "Losing My Religion" won two awards: Best Short Form Music Video and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. In 2017, "Losing My Religion" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Darius Rucker is an American singer, musician, and songwriter. He first gained fame as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of rock band Hootie & the Blowfish, which he founded in 1986 at the University of South Carolina along with Mark Bryan, Jim "Soni" Sonefeld, and Dean Felber. The band released five studio albums with Rucker as a member and charted six top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. Rucker co-wrote most of the songs with the other members of the band.
South Carolina is one of the Southern United States and has produced a number of renowned performers of jazz, rock, blues, R&B, country, bluegrass and other popular styles.
"Silly Love Songs" is a song by the British–American rock band Wings that was written by Paul and Linda McCartney. The song first appeared in March 1976 on the album Wings at the Speed of Sound, then it was released as a single backed with "Cook of the House" on 1 April in the US, and 30 April in the UK. The song, which features disco overtones, was written in response to music critics accusing McCartney of predominantly writing "silly love songs" and "sentimental slush"; however, McCartney has since clarified that the song was actually directed to John Lennon who accused him of writing such songs.
Mark William Bryan is an American musician. He is a founding member, songwriter, and lead guitarist for the band Hootie & the Blowfish. In 1986, Bryan and his friend Darius Rucker formed a duo called the Wolf Brothers while attending the University of South Carolina. Eventually, friends Dean Felber and Jim Sonefeld joined the band, which led to the founding of Hootie & the Blowfish in 1989. Bryan has also released three solo albums: 30 on the Rail, End of the Front, and Songs of the Fortnight.
The Best of Hootie & the Blowfish is a compilation album by the rock band Hootie & the Blowfish, released in 2004.
"Only Wanna Be with You" is a song by American alternative rock band Hootie & the Blowfish. After being included on the group's EP Kootchypop (1993), it was released in July 1995 as the third single from their breakthrough album, Cracked Rear View (1994). It peaked at number six on the US Billboard Hot 100, number one on the Billboard Top 40/Mainstream chart, number three on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, and number two on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart.
"Let Her Cry" is a song by American rock band Hootie & the Blowfish. It was released in December 1994 as the second single from their debut album, Cracked Rear View (1994), and became a top-10 hit in Australia, Canada, Iceland, and the United States. The song received the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals in 1996.
Fairweather Johnson is the second studio album by American rock band Hootie & the Blowfish, released on April 23, 1996, through Atlantic Records. Three songs from the album were released as singles: "Old Man & Me", "Tucker's Town", and "Sad Caper". The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 in May 1996, while their debut, Cracked Rear View, was still in the charts. It has sold 2,361,000 copies in the US as of May 2012. Despite its initial success, sales tapered off quickly, and the album earned mixed reviews. It was included in Pitchfork Media's 2010 list of "ten career-killing albums" of the 1990s. Stylus Magazine shared sentiments, including it in their "Non-Definitive Guide to the Follow-Up", saying "really, everyone saw this one coming a mile off. Who was really gonna care about another Hootie album?"
"Goodbye Girl" is a song by David Gates, lead singer of Bread, which was released as a single in December 1977 following the premiere of the hit film of the same name. As the theme song to the film, the song reached number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the biggest hit of Gates' solo career. It also reached number three on the Adult Contemporary chart. The song is from Gates' third solo album of the same name, released the following year.
"I Believe" is a single by the American alternative rock band Blessid Union of Souls from their 1995 debut album, Home. Vocalist Eliot Sloan wrote the song after the father of his girlfriend "Lisa" forced her to stop dating Sloan because of his race. "I Believe" is the band's highest-charting single in the United States, reaching number eight on the Billboard Hot 100, and it became a top-20 hit in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.
"Time" is a song by American rock band Hootie & the Blowfish. It was released on October 24, 1995, as the fourth single from their 1994 debut album, Cracked Rear View. "Time" peaked at number 14 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and reached number one in Canada for a week in February 1996. The song also peaked at number one on the Billboard Adult Top 40, number nine in Iceland, and number 35 in New Zealand.
"I Go Blind" is a song by Canadian alternative rock group 54-40. The song was released in Canada as the second single from the band's 1986 self-titled album, 54-40. It has since become one of the band's most popular songs.
"Drowning" is a song by American alternative rock band Hootie & the Blowfish. It was released in November 1995 as the fifth and final single from their debut album Cracked Rear View (1994). The song originally appeared on the group's 1991 cassette EP Time.
"Tucker's Town" is a song by American rock group Hootie & the Blowfish. It was released on June 25, 1996, as the second single from their second album, Fairweather Johnson (1996). In the United States, it peaked at number 38 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 24 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, and number 29 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart. Outside the US, "Tucker's Town" reached number two in Canada—ending 1996 as the country's 25th-most-successful single—and number 20 in Iceland.
"Old Man & Me " is a song by American rock group Hootie & the Blowfish. It was released in April 1996 as the lead single from their second album, Fairweather Johnson. In the United States, it peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 18 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, and number six on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart. The song also reached number one in Canada, becoming the band's third and final single to do so.
Kootchypop is a 1993 EP by Hootie & the Blowfish released independently. Several of the EP's songs became hits when they were re-recorded for their later major-label albums. In addition, the tracks were eventually remastered and included as a bonus on the deluxe 25th anniversary edition of Cracked Rear View.
Imperfect Circle is the sixth studio album by American rock band Hootie & the Blowfish, released on Capitol Records Nashville on November 1, 2019. It is their first new studio album in fourteen years; it has received mixed reviews and modest commercial success.
